Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is well-known for donning saris that speak as powerfully as her budget speech. Each Budget Day, she selects a drape that pays tribute to India's amazing textile heritage and the mastery of its artisans.
Enforcement agencies have highlighted risks related to money laundering and terror financing, prompting closer scrutiny of crypto platforms operating in India.
The International Monetary Fund chief economist-designate Raghuram Rajan feels big deficits -- whether India's fiscal deficit or the United States' current account deficit -- are not sustainable in the long term.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman tabled the first batch of Supplementary Demands for Grants for 2025-26 in the Lok Sabha, which seeks approval for a gross additional expenditure of Rs 1.32 lakh crore.
The government on Wednesday put out the draft of a new policy that projects the country's power sector will need Rs 50 trillion in investments by 2032 and Rs 200 trillion by 2047, proposing ambitious reforms in generation, transmission and distribution.
India's gems & jewellery exports witnessed 30.6 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) contraction in October to $2.17 million, amid the imposition of a steep 50 per cent tariff by the United States (US) on several Indian products.
For the first time, the government is likely to dip into the Oil Industry Development Fund (OIDF) to finance part of its fertiliser subsidy programme for 2025-26, according to official sources. The finance ministry has accounted for Rs 23,000 crore in the FY26 Budget as net additional resources to be drawn from dedicated reserve funds, including the OIDF, the Agriculture Infrastructure and Development Fund, and the Universal Service Obligation Fund.
Ahead of the Union Budget 2026-27, Indian business houses have urged the government to make demergers tax-neutral, particularly in cases involving transfer of investments in associate companies with 25 per cent or more shareholding, under the new Income Tax Act. This may possibly help some companies planning to go public, according to a source.
The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) has reviewed the evolving situation in West Asia, directing departments to assist Indian nationals affected by recent developments and emphasizing the need for dialogue and diplomacy.
The Union Budget 2025-26 had allocated Rs 2,33,210.68 crore (BE) to the ministry helmed by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
The finance ministry will have to rely on the weapons in its arsenal, since monetary policy is not providing the support.
The government on Sunday gave a strong push to upgradation and expansion of healthcare infrastructure, medical education and pharma sector with the Union Budget 2026-27 announcing a slew of steps, including those aimed at making India a global hub for allied healthcare professionals and biopharma manufacturing.
Analysts have sharply reduced cigarette maker ITC's earning estimates for the next two years, fearing a significant dent in the company's profitability and margins. This is owing to a steep hike in excise duty on tobacco by the government.
What we are watching is something different: A fog manufactured and maintained by the people who started the war, so that the question of why it was started never has to be answered, observes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the war in the Middle East.
'If you go by the capital expenditure, this is a good defence budget. But we will have to see if the government can keep defence spending at 2 per cent or higher in 2027-2028.'
It is difficult to make conveyor belt and baggage-scanning scenes thrilling -- which is how most people trying to sneak out through the Green Channel are caught -- but Neeraj Pandey and co-director Raghav M Jairath and co-writer Vipul K Rawal make sure there is enough going on to make the series watchable, raves Deepa Gahlot.
In 2025-26, the government allocated Rs 6,81,210 crore for defence budget.
'When a technology is this fundamental, a country should have its own version of it, rather than relying on whether someone else chooses to build it for you.'
The government on Friday received financial bids for the strategic disinvestment of IDBI Bank, the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (Dipam) said in an official statement on X.
The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has launched an integrated audit across 32 states and Union Territories to assess the ease of doing business for the micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) sector.
India's economy experienced a growth of 7.8 per cent during the October-December quarter of 2025-26, according to the new series of national accounts with 2022-23 as the base year.
The latest annual report of the finance ministry has disclosed that the agency funded seven projects worth USD 750 million in 2023-24.
'That journey across India has changed me forever.'
A UN Security Council report indicates that Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) was reportedly linked to a terror attack on the Red Fort in New Delhi. The report also highlights JeM's activities, including the establishment of a women-only wing and its presence in the region.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit Israel for two days to discuss bilateral and regional issues, marking his second visit to the Jewish state and highlighting the growing strategic partnership between India and Israel.
'The preparedness of our defence forces and positioning of intelligence assets were very different in 2008, so we had to rebuild our assets and preparedness.'
Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey on Thursday called for sharper disclosures in IPO (initial public offering) offer documents, particularly around risk factors, valuation rationale, objects of the issue, and utilisation of proceeds.
The first leg of the Budget session concluded with debates over the India-US trade deal and a former army chief's memoir, and will reassemble on March 9.
In a region increasingly shaped by competition and coercion, such collaboration strengthens security without confrontation, builds capacity without dependency and promotes order without domination, points out Dr Kumar.
The government on Wednesday approved two schemes worth Rs 45,000 crore to help exporters tide over the impact of high tariffs imposed by the US on Indian shipments.
CAG warns most states of fiscal imprudence as March spending overshoots limits, with key departments exhausting large portions of budgets in the last month of FY24.
To enable Indian banks and financial institutions to develop an aircraft-leasing ecosystem at GIFT City, the Ministry of Civil Aviation has sought support from the Ministry of Finance. It has also raised concern over slow progress in developing aircraft leasing in India.
'LIC's investment decisions are taken independently, following strict due diligence, risk assessment and fiduciary compliance.'
Ajit Pawar, who was the finance and planning minister, would have tabled his budget for 2026-27 next month when the state legislature's budget session begins in Mumbai on February 23.
New Delhi will substantially reduce tariffs on industrial and agricultural goods while continuing to protect sensitive sectors. Tariffs on some agricultural products that are not traditionally considered sensitive will be brought down to zero, while in the case of relatively sensitive items, duties will be reduced in a graded manner and quotas will be imposed.
It is learnt that India was mulling various options relating to the project after Trump administration threatened a 25 per cent additional tariff on countries doing business with Tehran.
The total expenditure on the MGNREGA programme, as per the revised estimates from 2025-26, was Rs 88,000 crore, while initially, a sum of Rs 86,000 crore was allocated.
The best course for the government at this time would be to tighten the seat belt a little more, without compromising on its investments in creating better infrastructure and giving a push to privatisation, points out A K Bhattacharya.
Total pending Customs arrears, including amounts under litigation, court stays and cases where the appeal period has not expired, stood at about Rs 1.36 trillion at the end of December 2024.
